Baseball

Three Golden Eagles named all-stars, two named all-league in Valley Baseball League

Oct 06, 2008

Although Tennessee Tech's baseball season ended in May, three
Tech players continued to play all-star caliber baseball throughout
the summer.

Pitchers Adam Liberatore and Jared Dobbs, and third baseman Evan
Webb were named Valley League all-stars in July, all playing for
the Waynesboro Generals . Liberatore went on to lead the league in
ERA during the regular season, and was named Valley League
first-team all-league at season's end, while Webb earned
second-team honors.

"Anytime you can do well, no matter where you are, it helps your
confidence," Tech baseball coach Matt Bragga said. "But when you're
talking about one of the top summer leagues in the country, and you
can go out and do that, that's huge."

The Valley League was formed in 1923, and has been an NCAA
sanctioned league since 1961. The league, which plays a 44-game
regular season schedule from June to August, is partially funded by
Major League Baseball, and has produced 18 current MLB players.

"It's a very high level of competition," Liberatore said. "It gives
you a chance to learn and get better. The fact that you're getting
out on the mound and getting a chance to work, that helps more than
anything."

In addition to leading the league in ERA, and posting an ERA of
1.36 after the postseason, Liberatore led the league in opponent
batting average (.170), and was second in wins (6) and innings
pitched (66 1/3).

"He just continues to mature as a person, and as a player," Bragga
said of Liberatore. "Summer ball has helped add to that maturation
process, that's one thing I see advantageous to the summer
leagues."

Liberatore said one of the biggest benefits of playing in the
Valley League was getting the opportunity to add to his pitching
repertoire, making him an even more dangerous pitcher by the time
he came back to Cookeville in the fall.

"Going into the summer I had a good fastball and a good breaking
ball," Liberatore said. "Coach Cole wanted me to work on my sinker,
something I started working on a little bit last year. By the end
of the summer I was real comfortable with it, and it was very
successful."

Bragga expects to see that work pay off in the 2009 season.

"It's huge to take that with you and continue to work on, and
refine that pitch," Bragga said.

Webb also had a spectacular season, leading the league in RBI (43),
plate appearances (227), and at-bats (197), while starting all 49
games, including postseason, for the Generals. Webb finished the
season batting .279 with 55 hits, including 11 doubles and six home
runs.

"I learned to have patience at the plate," Webb said. "As a hitter
up there you definitely have to have patience. You play everyday,
so you can't let one thing get you down. If you make an error, or
strike out, that is going to happen. You just have to stay on top
of it, and that mentality helped me out in the long run."

In addition to his impressive numbers from the plate, Webb also
turned heads from the hot corner, with a fielding percentage of
.915 on 153 chances, and turned six double plays.

"He is the best defensive third baseman I've ever coached," Bragga
said. "He's just a tremendous baseball player who really knows the
game."

Webb said that playing baseball at a high level on a daily basis
helped keep him on his best game throughout the summer.

"You just want to work on everything, and improve all around, they
key is just staying in the game," he said. "The competition this
summer was as good as any that I will see this year."

Dobbs, a teammate of Liberatore and Webb on the Generals, posted a
4-1 record in 34 innings pitched, while opponents hit just .207 off
of him.

"They already knew that they're good," Bragga said of his top
performers in the Valley League. "They're already confident guys,
but there's no denying that this is going to elevate their
game."

The success of the three Golden Eagles playing for the Generals led
to a dominating regular season performance, with Waynesboro winning
the Valley League's south division by six games, and Manager
Lawrence Nesselrodt earning Coach of the Year honors.

Golden Eagle pitcher Ryan Dennick also played in the Valley League
this summer, pitching for the Fauquier Gators. Dennick posted a
3.59 ERA in 42.2 innings pitched, including one complete game,
while opponents batted .247 against him.

"Coach Cole does a great job of placing our guys in the summer,"
Bragga said. "It's a wonderful experience, and we love for our guys
to go out and play."

Other Golden Eagles who played in the Valley league were
catcher/first baseman Tate McMillan, and RHP Thomas Gray.

"It's cool to show up to the field knowing you're going to see one
of your buddies who you haven't seen in a while," Liberatore
said.

The Golden Eagle's fall practices are underway, as they prepare for
the 2009 season, which begins in late February. Coach Bragga
continues to move the program in the right direction, winning 35
games in 2008, the second most in school history.